List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, 2009
Encyclopedia
This is a list of rocket
and mortar
attacks on Israel
in 2009 by Hamas
and other Palestinian militant groups from the Gaza Strip
.
Over the course of 2009, 566 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel, in comparison to 2,048 in 2008. Out of these, 406 were fired during the Gaza War, which ended on 18 January, and 160 were fired during the rest of the year.
January 31, 2009
February 3, 2009
February 4, 2009
February 6, 2009
February 8, 2009
February 10, 2009
February 11, 2009
February 13, 2009
February 15, 2009
February 16, 2009
February 18, 2009
February 19, 2009
February 20, 2009
February 21, 2009
February 22, 2009
February 23, 2009
February 25, 2009
February 26, 2009
February 27, 2009
February 28, 2009
March 2, 2009
March 5, 2009
March 7, 2009
March 8, 2009
March 10, 2009
March 11, 2009
March 13, 2009
March 14, 2009
March 24, 2009
April 15, 2009
April 30, 2009
August 24, 2009
August 29, 2009
August 30, 2009
August 31, 2009
September 20, 2009
September 24, 2009
September 28, 2009
September 29, 2009
November 13, 2009
November 21, 2009
November 23, 2009
30 December
31 December
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
and mortar
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
attacks on Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in 2009 by Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
and other Palestinian militant groups from the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
.
Over the course of 2009, 566 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel, in comparison to 2,048 in 2008. Out of these, 406 were fired during the Gaza War, which ended on 18 January, and 160 were fired during the rest of the year.
January
January 1, 2009-January 18, 2009- The Gaza War, which began in late 2008, ended on January 18, 2009. For Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel during this period, see Gaza War#Rocket attacks into Israel.
January 31, 2009
- One Grad rocket struck south of Ashkelon after a Color Red alert sounded in the city. The projectile struck an open field in the city. No injuries were reported in the attack.
February
February 1, 2009- Palestinian militants in Gaza fired at least five Qassam rockets and 14 mortar shells at southern Israel.
- Two Israel Defense Forces soldiers and an Israeli civilian were lightly wounded when four mortar shells fired from the Gaza Strip exploded near them in the Sha'ar Hanegev region of the western Negev.
- Three rockets struck the Eshkol region, two of them landing in open fields and the third between two kindergartens. A fourth rocket struck an open field in the Sdot Negev Regional Council area and a fifth exploded in Nir Am, near the Gaza border. No casualties or damage were reported in any of the strikes.
- Four mortar shells struck the Eshkol region of the western Negev earlier on Sunday, as well. No injuries or damages were caused.
- Palestinian militants in Gaza fired at least one Qassam rocket and 3 mortar shells at southern Israel. The Israel Defense Forces said it targeted the gunmen who had fired the mortars.
February 3, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired a Grad into Ashkelon on Tuesday. Mayor Benny Vaknin told Israel Radio that a Grad rocket "struck the heart of a residential neighbourhood". "To the best of my knowledge, when it is a Grad rocket, it is from Hamas," Vaknin said.
February 4, 2009
- Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip launched a mortar shell at southern Israel, which exploded in the Eshkol Regional CouncilEshkol Regional CouncilThe Eshcol Regional Council is a regional council in the north-western Negev, in Israel's Southern District. The regional council's territory lies midway between Ashkelon and Beersheba, bounded on the west by the Gaza Strip while the eastern border abuts the territory of the Bnei Shimon Regional...
. Three people were treated for shock after the attack, but there were no casualties.
February 6, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired two rockets from the coastal strip into Israel. The first of the rockets hit the Sha'ar Hanegev region. Three hours later, a rocket hit near the coastal city of Ashkelon. The attacks caused no casualties.
February 8, 2009
- Palestinian militants in the Gaza StripGaza Stripthumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
fired a Grad rocket at AshkelonAshkelonAshkelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with the Gaza Strip. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Neolithic Age...
. The rocket attack on the southern town caused neither casualties nor damage. Earlier that day, a Qassam rocketQassam rocketThe Qassam rocket is a simple steel artillery rocket developed and deployed by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military arm of Hamas. Three models have been produced and used between 2001 and 2011....
fired from the Gaza Strip struck the western Negev. The IDF said one car was set ablaze and several others were damaged by shrapnel. No injuries were reported.
February 10, 2009
- A Qassam rocket struck the western Negev during the day of the 2009 Israeli legislative election.. Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired the rocket just half an hour before the polls were to close.
February 11, 2009
- Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired four mortar shells at the western Negev [some versions indicate only two mortar shells] during the course of the day Wednesday.
February 13, 2009
- Two Qassam rockets and a mortar shell fired by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip exploded in the western Negev, causing no casualties or damages. One of the rockets struck an open field in the Eshkol Regional Council and about an hour later another hit near the city of Sderot.
February 15, 2009
- A rocket struck southern Israel late Sunday night in the Sdot Negev area
February 16, 2009
- Palestinian rockets hit Israel Monday morning. Two rockets fired from Gaza one hitting an open area in the Sha'ar Hanegev region and the other hitting inside a kibbutz in the Sdot Negev region. No injuries were reported in either incident, but some property sustained damage.
- IAF jets bombed the Philadelphi route, an area of smuggling tunnels near Gaza's border with Egypt in response to the rocket fire.
February 18, 2009
- On Wednesday, a Qassam rocket hit the western Negev. The rocket exploded in a field in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council, causing no casualties or damages.
February 19, 2009
- Five Qassam rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into the western Negev. Two in the morning hitting the Eshkol region and three in the evening, one hitting near Sderot and the other two near Netivot. The rocket attacks caused neither casualties nor damage. The IAF bombed six smuggling tunnels along the Gaza-Egypt border in response to the morning rocket fire. The attack caused secondary blasts, according to the IDF, which showed that explosives were hit in the airstrike. There were no reports of casualties.
February 20, 2009
- Gaza militants fired 10 mortar shells and a Qassam rocket into the western Negev on Friday
February 21, 2009
- A rocket struck Ashkelon
February 22, 2009
- Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip on Sunday fired two mortar rounds at Israel Defense Forces soldiers near the border, Israel Radio reported. Earlier a Qassam rocket hit the western Negev. There were no casualties or damages reported in either incident.
February 23, 2009
- Two Qassam rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into the western Negev. One in the morning landed near SderotSderotSderot is a western Negev city in the Southern District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 20,700. The city has been an ongoing target of Qassam rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip...
and one in the afternoon landed near a kibbutzKibbutzA kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
.
February 25, 2009
- Two Qassam rockets struck the Sha'ar Hanegev region in the western Negev on Wednesday. There were no reports of casualties in either incident. As a response, The Israel Air Force bombed smuggling tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border. There were secondary explosions, showing they contained weapons material.
February 26, 2009
- Three Qassam rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip. One of the rockets damaged two houses in Sderot early in the morning and the other landed near an industrial zone. A woman and her son were treated for shock. In the evening, a rocket struck an open field in the Eshkol Region.
February 27, 2009
- Two Qassam rockets were fired from Gaza. One struck the western Negev while the other hit the Sdot Hanegev area. No casualties or damage were reported in the incidents.
February 28, 2009
- Ten rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel. Six rockets targeted Gaza-area communities, two hit Ashkelon, one landed in the Eshkol district and one near the Sdot Negev area. There were no casualties or property damage, with the exception of one rocket that struck an empty schoolyard in Ashkelon. The school itself was severely damaged, with shrapnel hitting some of the classrooms (including areas the Defense Ministry had defined as safe). Several people were treated for shock by paramedics who arrived at the scene. Following the attack, Deputy Mayor Cohen of Ashqelon met with the commander of the Home Front Command Southern District. They decided the school would be closed on the 1st of March, while its students would be sent to an alternative venue. All other schools in the city will function as usual.
March
March 1, 2009- 7 rockets were launched into Israel, one of which struck a yard in Sderot. No one was hurt in any of the attacks.
March 2, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired a rocket into the southern city of Ashkelon from the Gaza Strip Monday evening. No one was hurt and no damage was caused in the attack.
March 5, 2009
- Palestinian militants launched a barrage of Qassam rockets and mortar rounds into Israel on Thursday. They fired six Qassams from the Hamas-controlled territory into the western Negev; all struck open areas, and caused no damages or injuries. Two mortar shells struck near the Nahal Oz region, also causing no casualties.
- Later on the evening, Palestinian militants fired a Grad rocket that struck a synagogue in the southern town of Netivot, causing light damage to the building. The Israel Air Force retaliated shortly after the attack, striking four smuggling tunnels in the southern Gaza Strip, the army said. No one was wounded in the rocket attack on Netivot.
- In a statement issued after the strike on the tunnels, the Israel Defense Forces said: "As the sole authority in the Gaza Strip, Hamas bears full responsibility for all terror originating within its area of control. The IDF will continue to respond to any attempts to destabilize Israel's South."
March 7, 2009
- At least three rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel, hitting the western Negev.
March 8, 2009
- On Sunday morning, militants in Gaza fired four Qassam rockets at the western Negev. Three rockets hit the Eshkol region and one struck the Sdot Negev region. No injuries or damage were reported in any of the incidents, but the early warning siren was not activated, causing panic among some local residents.
- The Israel Defense Forces reported they targeted a weapons warehouse used by militants and bombed two smuggling tunnels under the Egypt-Gaza border. Hamas security officials said that the warehouse was empty and no one was injured.
March 10, 2009
- Militants fired four rockets at Israel on Tuesday, the IDF said.
- On Tuesday morning, militants in Gaza fired two Qassam rockets at the western Negev. No injuries or damage were reported in either of the incidents.
- Later two more rockets were fired. The Israel Defense Forces says its aircraft hit a Palestinian rocket squad in Gaza just after the militants fired the rockets. Palestinian security says three people were wounded. The airstrike took place in northern Gaza, the most frequent launching area for rockets.
March 11, 2009
- Shortly afterwards, two rockets struck the Eshkol region in the western Negev. The rockets hit open areas, causing no casualties. Later, in the afternoon, two additional Qassam rockets fired from the Gaza Strip hit the western Negev, one of them striking a canister of natural gas in the Sha'ar Hanegev region. The canister did not explode, and no injuries were reported in either incident. Along the day, two Israeli "women were treated for shock." in relation with the rockets
March 13, 2009
- Three rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel. One was fired in the morning hitting the Eshkol region. The other two were fired in the evening hitting the western Negev. No injuries or damage were reported.
March 14, 2009
- Rockets explode inside Israel in the western Negev.
March 24, 2009
- A Qassam rocket was fired at southern IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
from the Gaza StripGaza Stripthumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
. The rocket landed in an open area south of AshkelonAshkelonAshkelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with the Gaza Strip. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Neolithic Age...
and caused no injuries or damage.
April
April 1, 2009- Three Qassam rockets were fired by Gaza militants from the Strip into Israel.
April 15, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket into the western Negev on Wednesday, ending a 2-week lull in cross-border rocket fire. The rocket exploded in the Eshkol region, causing neither casualties nor property damage.
April 30, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket into southern Israel. The rocket landed near a kibbutzKibbutzA kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
, but "no injuries or damage" were reported.
May
May 10, 2009- Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket into southern Israel. The rocket landed near a kibbutzKibbutzA kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
, but "no damage was reported."
July
July 16, 2009- Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket into southern Israel. The rocket landed in the Sdot Negev region and no damage was reported.
August
August 9, 2009- Palestinian militants fired mortars into southern Israel. During one round, the mortars landed two mortar shells struck near the Erez CrossingErez CrossingThe Erez Crossing is a pedestrian/cargo terminal on the Israeli Gaza Strip barrier. It is located in the northern end of the Gaza Strip, on the border with Israel.It is part of a complex formerly including the Erez Industrial Park....
, just yards away from ambulances that were transferring a Palestinian heart patient to Israel for treatment." During another round, shells "landed nearby a group of IDF engineers."
August 24, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired mortar shells into southern Israel. The mortar shells landed near an IDF base and injured an Israeli soldiers.
August 29, 2009
- A rocket fired by Palestinian militants in the Gaza StripGaza Stripthumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...
"landed in the western NegevNegevThe Negev is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The Arabs, including the native Bedouin population of the region, refer to the desert as al-Naqab. The origin of the word Neghebh is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'...
."
August 30, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired mortar shells into southern Israel. The mortar shells were aimed at the Israeli civilian city of SderotSderotSderot is a western Negev city in the Southern District of Israel. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 20,700. The city has been an ongoing target of Qassam rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip...
.
August 31, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired rockets into southern Israel. As of the afternoon of 31 August, the landing spot for the projectiles have not been located.
September
September 3, 2009- Palestinian militants fired mortar shells into southern Israel. The shells "landed in an open areas in the western Negev."
September 20, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired Qassam rockets into southern Israel, which "exploded in open areas in the western Negev."
September 24, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired Qassam rockets into southern Israel, which "hit an open area in the Eshkol Regional Council in southern Israel. "
September 28, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired Qassam rockets into southern Israel.
September 29, 2009
- Palestinian militants fired Qassam rockets into southern Israel.
October
October 2, 2009- Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip fired Qassam rockets into Shaar Hanegev in southern Israel.
November
November 2, 2009- A Qassam rocket was fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip, landing in an open field in the Shaar Hanegev region. No injuries or damage were reported.
November 13, 2009
- A Qassam rocket was fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip, landing in an open field in the Sdot Negev regionalSdot Negev Regional CouncilSdot Negev Regional Council , formerly known as Azata Regional Council is a regional council in the north-western Negev desert in the South District of Israel. Established in 1951, it covers two kibbutzim, 12 moshavim and two communal settlements...
. No injuries or damage were reported.
November 21, 2009
- A Qassam rocket was fired in the morning at the city of Sderot prior to an agreement among Gaza factions to end the rocket attacks. The rocket landed in an open area in the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council causing no injuries or damage.
November 23, 2009
- A Qassam rocket was fired at southern Israel 48 hours after Hamas announced "that it secured an agreement" among Gaza factions to end the rocket attacks. "[T]he rocket exploded near a kibbutz in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council" causing no reported injuries or damage.
December
16 December- Two rockets were fired into Israel and landed in an open area near Sderot.
30 December
- A Palestinian mortar shell fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip landed in an open area in the Eshkol regionEshkol Regional CouncilThe Eshcol Regional Council is a regional council in the north-western Negev, in Israel's Southern District. The regional council's territory lies midway between Ashkelon and Beersheba, bounded on the west by the Gaza Strip while the eastern border abuts the territory of the Bnei Shimon Regional...
. Nobody was wounded and no damage was reported.
31 December
- Two Russian-made Grad rockets were fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip, one hitting the city of NetivotNetivotNetivot is a city in the Southern District of Israel in Israel. At the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 26,700. It was founded in 1956 as a development town along with Sderot to the north, and Ofakim to the south...
at around 9:30 p.m. The Red Color early warning system failed to go off. One woman suffered shock and no damage was reported. The incident marked the first instance since the Gaza War where Palestinian militants used a rocket of this type. The Israel Air Force bombed two smuggling tunnels in the Gaza Strip overnight Friday in response to a rocket fired by Gaza militants that hit the southern Israeli town of Netivot on Thursday evening. Militants from the Popular Front for the Liberation of PalestinePopular Front for the Liberation of PalestineThe Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine is a Palestinian Marxist-Leninist organisation founded in 1967. It has consistently been the second-largest of the groups forming the Palestine Liberation Organization , the largest being Fatah...
(PFLP) claimed responsibility. Israel responded on 1 January by bombing two smuggling tunnels in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian sources said Israel struck several targets, and four people were lightly injured.
See also
- Incidents in the Gaza War
- Timeline of the Gaza War
- List of Israeli attacks on Gaza, 2009
- List of rocket and mortar attacks in Israel in 2001 through 2007